Tag: craniotomy

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Seven bypasses simulation set: description and validity assessment of novel models for microneurosurgical training

J Neurosurg 138:732–739, 2023

Microsurgical training remains indispensable to master cerebrovascular bypass procedures, but simulation models for training that accurately replicate microanastomosis in narrow, deep-operating corridors are lacking. Seven simulation bypass scenarios were developed that included head models in various surgical positions with premade approaches, simulating the restrictions of the surgical corridors and hand positions for microvascular bypass training. This study describes these models and assesses their validity.

METHODS Simulation models were created using 3D printing of the skull with a designed craniotomy. Brain and external soft tissues were cast using a silicone molding technique from the clay-sculptured prototypes. The 7 simulation scenarios included: 1) temporal craniotomy for a superficial temporal artery (STA)–middle cerebral artery (MCA) bypass using the M4 branch of the MCA; 2) pterional craniotomy and transsylvian approach for STA-M2 bypass; 3) bifrontal craniotomy and interhemispheric approach for side-to-side bypass using the A3 branches of the anterior cerebral artery; 4) far lateral craniotomy and transcerebellomedullary approach for a posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA)–PICA bypass or 5) PICA reanastomosis; 6) orbitozygomatic craniotomy and transsylvian-subtemporal approach for a posterior cerebral artery bypass; and 7) extended retrosigmoid craniotomy and transcerebellopontine approach for an occipital artery–anterior inferior cerebellar artery bypass. Experienced neurosurgeons evaluated each model by practicing the aforementioned bypasses on the models. Face and content validities were assessed using the bypass participant survey.

RESULTS A workflow for model production was developed, and these models were used during microsurgical courses at 2 neurosurgical institutions. Each model is accompanied by a corresponding prototypical case and surgical video, creating a simulation scenario. Seven experienced cerebrovascular neurosurgeons practiced microvascular anastomoses on each of the models and completed surveys. They reported that actual anastomosis within a specific approach was well replicated by the models, and difficulty was comparable to that for real surgery, which confirms the face validity of the models. All experts stated that practice using these models may improve bypass technique, instrument handling, and surgical technique when applied to patients, confirming the content validity of the models.

CONCLUSIONS The 7 bypasses simulation set includes novel models that effectively simulate surgical scenarios of a bypass within distinct deep anatomical corridors, as well as hand and operator positions. These models use artificial materials, are reusable, and can be implemented for personal training and during microsurgical courses.

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Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy for First-Line Treatment of Surgically Accessible Recurrent Glioblastoma: Outcomes Compared With a Surgical Cohort

Neurosurgery 91:701–709, 2022

Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) for glioblastoma (GBM) has been reserved for poor surgical candidates and deep “inoperable” lesions. We present the first reported series of LITT for surgically accessible recurrent GBM (rGBM) that would otherwise be treated with surgical resection.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the use of LITT for unifocal, lobar, first-time rGBM compared with a similar surgical cohort.

METHODS: A retrospective institutional database was used to identify patients with unifocal, lobar, first-time rGBM who underwent LITT or resection between 2013 and 2020. Clinical and volumetric lesional characteristics were compared between cohorts. Subgroup analysis of patients with lesions ≤20 cm 3 was also completed. Primary outcomes were overall survival and progression-free survival.

RESULTS: Of the 744 patients with rGBM treated from 2013 to 2020, a LITT cohort of 17 patients were compared with 23 similar surgical patients. There were no differences in baseline characteristics, although lesions were larger in the surgical cohort (7.54 vs 4.37 cm3 , P = .017). Despite differences in lesion size, both cohorts had similar extents of ablation/resection (90.7% vs 95.1%, P = .739). Overall survival (14.1 vs 13.8 months, P = .578) and progression-free survival (3.7 vs 3.3 months, P = 0. 495) were similar. LITT patients had significantly shorter hospital stays (2.2 vs 3.0 days, P = .004). Subgroup analysis of patients with lesions ≤20 cm 3 showed similar outcomes, with LITT allowing for significantly shorter hospital stays.

CONCLUSION: We found no difference in survival outcomes or morbidity between LITT and repeat surgery for surgically accessible rGBM while LITT resulted in shorter hospital stays and more efficient postoperative care.

 

 

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Prognostic data analysis of surgical treatments for intracerebral hemorrhage

Neurosurgical Review (2022) 45:2733–2744

Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a commonly occurring disease in neurosurgery, yet its surgical treatment is controversial.

This paper pertains to the study of the effects of different treatment regimens on the outcome of ICH population. Based on a globally shared third-party MIMIC-III database, the researchers firstly described the dissimilarities in survival probability, mortality, and neurological recovery among mainstream treatments for ICH; secondly, patient classification was determined by important clinical features; and outcome variations among treatment groups were compared.

The 28-day, 90-day, and in-hospital mortality in the craniotomy group were significantly lower than minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and non-surgical group patients; and, the medium/long-term mortality in MIS group was significantly lower than the non-surgical group. The craniotomy group positively correlated with short-term GCS recovery compared with the MIS group; no difference existed between the non-surgical and MIS groups. The craniotomy group 90-day survival probability and short-term GCS recovery were superior to the other two treatments in the subgroups of first GCS 3–12; this tendency also presented in the MIS group over non-surgical group. For milder patients (first GCS > 12), the three treatment regimens had a minimal effect on patient survival, but the non-surgical group showed an advantage in short-term GCS recovery.

Craniotomy patients have a lower mortality and a better short-term neurological recovery in an ICH population, especially in short-to-medium term mortality and short-term neurological recovery over MIS patients. In addition, surgical treatment is recommendable for patients with a GCS ≤ 12.

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Mastication after craniotomy: pilot assessment of postoperative oral health‐related quality of life

Acta Neurochirurgica (2022) 164:1347–1355

Neurosurgical approaches to the brain often require the mobilization of the temporal muscle. Many patients complain of postoperative pain, atrophy, reduced mouth opening, and masticatory problems. Although the pterional, frontolateral- extended-pterional, and temporal craniotomies are the most frequently used approaches in neurosurgery, a systematic assessment of the postoperative oral health-related quality of life has never been performed so far. This study evaluates the oral health-related quality of life of patients after pterional, frontolateral-extended-pterional, or temporal craniotomy using a validated and standardized dental questionnaire, compares the results with the normal values of the general population, and investigates whether this questionnaire is sensitive to changes caused by surgical manipulation of the temporal muscle.

Methods The “Oral Health Impact Profile” (OHIP14) is a validated questionnaire to assess the oral health-related quality of life. It asks the patients to assess their oral health situation within the past 7 days in 14 questions. Possible answers range from 0 (never) to 4 (very often). Sixty patients with benign intracranial processes operated through a lateral cranial approach were included. The questionnaire was answered before surgery (baseline) and 3 months and 15 months after surgery.

Results Overall, postoperative OHIP scores increase significantly after 3 months and decrease after 15 months, but not to preoperative values. No factors can be identified which show a considerable relationship with the postoperative OHIP score.

Conclusions Postoperative impairment of mouth opening and pain during mastication can be observed 3 to 15 months after surgery and sometimes cause feedback from patients and their dentists. However, in line with existing literature, these complaints decrease with time. The study shows that the OHIP questionnaire is sensitive to changes caused by surgical manipulation of the temporal muscle and can therefore be used to investigate the influence of surgical techniques on postoperative complaints. Postoperatively, patients show worse OHIP scores than the general population, demonstrating that neurosurgical cranial approaches negatively influence the patient’s oral health-related wellbeing. Larger studies using the OHIP questionnaire should evaluate if postoperative physical therapy, speech therapy, or specialized rehabilitation devices can improve the masticatory impairment after craniotomy.

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Endoscopic endonasal versus transcranial surgery for primary resection of craniopharyngiomas based on a new QST classification system

J Neurosurg 135:1298–1309, 2021

An assessment of the transcranial approach (TCA) and the endoscopic endonasal approach (EEA) for craniopharyngiomas (CPs) according to tumor types has not been reported. The aim of this study was to evaluate both surgical approaches for different types of CPs.

METHODS A retrospective review of primary resected CPs was performed. A QST classification system based on tumor origin was used to classify tumors into 3 types as follows: infrasellar/subdiaphragmatic CPs (Q-CPs), subarachnoidal CPs (S-CPs), and pars tuberalis CPs (T-CPs). Within each tumor type, patients were further arranged into two groups: those treated via the TCA and those treated via the EEA. Patient and tumor characteristics, surgical outcomes, and postoperative complications were obtained. All variables were statistically analyzed between surgical groups for each tumor type.

RESULTS A total of 315 patients were included in this series, of whom 87 were identified with Q-CPs (49 treated via TCA and 38 via EEA); 56 with S-CPs (36 treated via TCA and 20 via EEA); and 172 with T-CPs (105 treated via TCA and 67 via EEA). Patient and tumor characteristics were equivalent between both surgical groups in each tumor type. The overall gross-total resection rate (90.5% TCA vs 91.2% EEA, p = 0.85) and recurrence rate (8.9% TCA vs 6.4% EEA, p = 0.35) were similar between surgical groups. The EEA group had a greater chance of visual improvement (61.6% vs 35.8%, p = 0.01) and a decreased risk of visual deterioration (1.6% vs 11.0%, p < 0.001). Of the patients with T-CPs, postoperative hypothalamic status was better in the TCA group than in the EEA group (p = 0.016). Postoperative CSF leaks and nasal complication rates occurred more frequently in the EEA group (12.0% vs 0.5%, and 9.6% vs 0.5%; both p < 0.001). For Q-CPs, EEA was associated with an increased gross-total resection rate (97.4% vs 85.7%, p = 0.017), decreased recurrence rate (2.6% vs 12.2%, p = 0.001), and lower new hypopituitarism rate (28.9% vs 57.1%, p = 0.008). The recurrence-free survival in patients with Q-CPs was also significantly different between surgical groups (log-rank test, p = 0.037). The EEA required longer surgical time for T-CPs (p = 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS CPs could be effectively treated by radical surgery with favorable results. Both TCA and EEA have their advantages and limitations when used to manage different types of tumors. Individualized surgical strategies based on tumor growth patterns are mandatory to achieve optimal outcomes.

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Embolization of the middle meningeal artery in patients with chronic subdural hematoma—a systematic review and meta-analysis

Acta Neurochirurgica (2020) 162:777–784

Chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) remains a neurosurgical condition with high recurrence rate after surgical treatment. The primary pathological mechanism is considered to be repeated microbleedings from fragile neo-vessels within the outer hematoma membrane. The neo-vessels are supplied from peripheral branches of the middle meningeal artery, and embolization of MMA (eMMA) has been performed to prevent re-bleeding episodes and thereby CSDH recurrence.

Objective To evaluate the published evidence for the effect of eMMA in patients with recurrent CSDH. Secondarily, to investigate the effect of eMMA as an alternative to surgery for primary treatment of CSDH. Method A systematic review of the literature on eMMA in patients with recurrent CSDH was conducted. PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane databases were reviewed using the search terms: Embolization, Medial Meningeal Artery, Chronic Subdural Haematoma, and Recurrence. Furthermore, the following mesh terms were used: Chronic Subdural Haematoma AND embolization AND medial meningeal artery AND recurrence. Eighteen papers were found and included. No papers were excluded. The number of patients with primary CSDH and the number of patients with recurrent CSDH treated with eMMA were listed. Furthermore, the number of recurrences in both categories was registered.

Results Eighteen papers with a total of 191 included patients diagnosed with CSDH treated with eMMA for primary and recurrent CSDH were identified. Recurrence rate for patients treated with eMMA for recurrent CSDH was found to be 2.4%, 95%CI (0.5%; 11.0%), whereas the recurrence rate for patients treated with eMMAfor primary CSDH was 4.1%, 95%CI (1.4%; 11.4%).

Conclusion eMMA is a minimally invasive procedure for treatment of CSDH. Although this study is limited by publication bias, it seems that this procedure may reduce recurrence rates compared with burr hole craniostomy for both primary and recurrent hematomas. A controlled study is warranted.

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Staged Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT) Treatments to Left Insular Low-Grade Glioma

Neurosurgery 2019 DOI:10.1093/neuros/nyz120

Low-grade insular gliomas remain challenging tumors for aggressive resection because of the numerous functional and vascular structures surrounding them. Because of the potential morbidities associated with open surgical resection, less invasive techniques may confer a more optimal balance between cytoreduction and surgical complications. For this reason, we evaluated the use of laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) for resection of a dominant hemisphere oligodendroglioma World Health Organization (WHO) grade II in a 68-yr-old patient by use of multiple staged surgeries for its resection.

CLINICAL PRESENTATION: Patient KK was a 68-yr-old female who was found to have a large, left-sided insular mass that was shown to be an oligodendroglioma WHO grade II, positive for codeletion 1p/19q and IDH1 mutant on biopsy. Over the course of 3 mo, KK underwent 2 stages of LITT, targeting different areas of the 5-cmtumor. The 60-d magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated a reduction in size of the tumor from5.2×3.3×2.4 cm to 3.6 × 1.9 × 1.4 cm. She returned for a second stage targeting the anterior portion of the tumor. KK did well postoperatively and went on to postsurgical chemoradiation. At the
2-yr follow-up, the lesion showed near resolution on MRI.

CONCLUSION: This case report demonstrates successful use of LITT for staged surgeries to treat a left hemisphere-dominant insular lesion. This establishes the use of LITT as a viable, minimally invasive option to treat tumors that are difficult to access or pose concerns for increased morbidity through an open surgery.

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Surgical management of Tuberculum sellae Meningiomas: Myths, facts, and controversies

Acta Neurochirurgica (2020) 162:631–640

The optimal management of tuberculum sellae (TS) meningiomas, especially the surgical strategy, continues to be debated along with several controversies that persist.

Methods A task force was created by the EANS skull base section committee along with its members and other renowned experts in the field to generate recommendations for the surgical management of these tumors on a European perspective. To achieve this, the task force also reviewed in detail the literature in this field and had formal discussions within the group.

Results The constituted task force dealt with the practice patterns that exist with respect to pre-operative radiological investigations, ophthalmological and endocrinological assessments, optimal surgical strategies, and follow-up management.

Conclusion This article represents the consensually derived opinion of the task force with respect to the surgical treatment of tuberculum sellae meningiomas. Areas of uncertainty where further clinical research is required were identified.

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Thirty-Day Outcomes After Craniotomy for Primary Malignant Brain Tumors

Neurosurgery 83:1249–1259, 2018

Despite improved perioperative management, the rate of postoperative morbidity and mortality after brain tumor resection remains considerably high.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the rates, causes, timing, and predictors of major complication, extended length of stay (>10 d), reoperation, readmission, and death within 30 d after craniotomy for primary malignant brain tumors.

METHODS: Patients were extracted from the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program registry (2005-2015) and analyzed using multivariable logistic regression.

RESULTS: A total of 7376 patientswere identified, ofwhich 948 (12.9%) experienced a major complication. The most common major complications were reoperation (5.1%), venous thromboembolism (3.5%), and death (2.6%). Furthermore, 15.6% stayed longer than 10 d, and 11.5% were readmitted within 30 d after surgery. The most common reasons for reoperation and readmission were intracranial hemorrhage (18.5%) and wound-related complications (11.9%), respectively. Multivariable analysis identified older age, higher body mass index, higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) classification, dependent functional status, elevated preoperative white blood cell count (white blood cell count [WBC], >12 000 cells/mm3), and longer operative time as predictors of major complication (all P < .001). Higher ASA classification, dependent functional status, elevated WBC, and ventilator dependence were predictors of extended length of stay (all P < .001). Higher ASA classification and elevatedWBCwere predictors of reoperation (both P<.001). Higher ASA classification and dependent functional status were predictors of readmission (both P < .001). Older age, higher ASA classification, and dependent functional status were predictors of death (all P< .001).

CONCLUSION: This study provides a descriptive analysis and identifies predictors for short term complications, including death, after craniotomy for primary malignant brain tumors.

 

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Topical Vancomycin Reduces Surgical-Site Infections After Craniotomy: A Prospective, Controlled Study

Neurosurgery 83:761–767, 2018

Surgical-site infections (SSIs) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in neurosurgical patients. Topical antibiotics are one potential method to reduce the incidence of these infections.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the efficacy of topical vancomycin applied within the wound during craniotomy in a large prospective cohort study at a major academic center.

METHODS: Three hundred fifty-five patients were studied prospectively in this cohort study; 205 patients received 1 g of topical vancomycin powder in the subgaleal space while 150 matched control patients did not. Patients otherwise received identical care. The primary outcome variable was SSI rate factored by cohort. Secondary analysis examined cost savings from vancomycin usage estimated from hospital costs associated with SSI in craniotomy patients.

RESULTS: The addition of topical vancomycinwas associated with a significantly lower rate of SSI than standard of care alone (0.49% [1/205] vs 6% [9/150], P=.002). Based on the costs of revision surgery for infections, topical vancomycin usage was estimated to save $1367 446 per 1000 craniotomy patients. No adverse reactions occurred.

CONCLUSION: Topical vancomycin is a safe, effective, and cost-saving measure to prevent SSIs following craniotomy. These results have broad implications for standard of care in craniotomy.

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Favorable clinical outcome following surgical evacuation of deep-seated and lobar supratentorial intracerebral hemorrhage

Acta Neurochirurgica (2018) 160:1737–1747

In spontaneous supratentorial intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), the role of surgical treatment remains controversial, particularly in deep-seated ICHs. We hypothesized that early mortality and long-term functional outcome differ between patients with surgically treated lobar and deep-seated ICH.

Method Patients who underwent craniotomy for ICH evacuation from 2009 to 2015 were retrospectively evaluated and categorized into two subgroups: lobar and deep-seated ICH. The modified Rankin Scale (mRS) was used to evaluate long-term functional outcome.

Result Of the 123 patients operated for ICH, 49.6%(n = 61) had lobar and 50.4%(n = 62) deep-seated ICH. At long-term followup (mean 4.2 years), 25 patients (20.3%) were dead, while 51.0% of survivors had a favorable outcome (mRS score ≤ 3). Overall mortality was 13.0% at 30 days and 17.9% at 6 months post-ictus, not influenced by ICH location. Mortality was higher in patients ≥ 65 years old (p = 0.020). The deep-seated group had higher incidence and extent of intraventricular extension, younger age (52.6 ± 9.0 years vs. 58.5 ± 9.8 years; p < 0.05), more frequently pupillary abnormalities, and longer neurocritical care stay (p < 0.05). The proportion of patients with good outcome was 48.0% in deep-seated vs. 54.1% in lobar ICH (p = 0.552). In lobar ICH, independent predictors of long-term outcome were age, hemorrhage volume, preoperative level of consciousness, and pupillary reaction. In deep-seated ICHs, only high age correlated significantly with poor outcome.

Conclusions At long-term follow-up, most ICH survivors had a favorable clinical outcome. Neither mortality nor long-term functional outcome differed between patients operated for lobar or deep-seated ICH. A combination of surgery and neurocritical care can result in favorable clinical outcome, regardless of ICH location.

 

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Simple Preoperative Patient-Reported Factors Predict Adverse Outcome After Elective Cranial Neurosurgery

Neurosurgery, 83, 2: 197–202

Patient-reported preoperative factors hold promise in improving the prediction of postoperative adverse events, but they have been poorly studied.
OBJECTIVE
To study the role of patient-reported factors in the preoperative risk stratification of elective craniotomy patients.
METHODS
A prospective, unselected cohort of 322 adult patients underwent elective craniotomy in Helsinki, Finland. We preoperatively recorded the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score, Helsinki ASA score, and 3 questionnaire-based patient-reported factors including overall health status, ability to climb 2 flights of stairs, and cognitive function (Test Your Memory test). Outcome measures comprised in-hospital major and overall morbidity. Receiver-operating characteristic curves served to calculate area under the curve (AUC) values for a composite score of patient-reported factors and both ASA scores with regard to outcomes.
RESULTS
In-hospital major and overall morbidity rate was 15.2%. Only preoperatively diminished cognitive function remained a significant predictor of major morbidity after multivariable logistic regression analysis (P < .001, odds ratio 1.1, confidence interval 1.0-1.1). A composite score of our 3 patient-reported factors had a higher AUC (0.675) for major morbidity than original ASA score (0.543) or Helsinki ASA score (0.572). In elderly patients, the composite score had an AUC of 0.726 for major morbidity.
CONCLUSION
Preoperative patient-reported factors had higher sensitivity for detecting major morbidity compared to the ASA scores in this study. Particularly, the simple composite score seems to predict adverse outcomes in elective cranial surgery surprisingly well, especially in the elderly. These results are interesting and worth confirming in other centers.

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State of Robotic Mastoidectomy: Literature Review

Over the past 30 years, the application of robotics in the field of neurotology has grown. Robots are able to perform increasingly complex tasks with ever improving accuracy, allowing them to be used in a broad array of applications. A mastoidectomy, in which a drill is used to remove a portion of the mastoid part of the temporal bone at the base of the skull, is one such application. To determine the current state of neurotologic robotics in the specific context of mastoidectomy, a review of the literature was carried out. This qualitative review explores what has been done in this field to date, as well as what has yet to be done. Although the research suggests that robotics can be and has been successfully used to assist with mastoidectomy, it also suggests the incompleteness of robotic development in the field.

At present, only 2 robotic systems have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for neurosurgical use and the literature lacks evidence of meaningful clinical testing of new systems to change that. The cost of robotics also remains prohibitive. However, strides have been made, with at least 1 robot for mastoidectomy having reached the point of cadaveric trials. In addition, the research suggests some of the characteristics that should be considered when designing robots for mastoidectomy, such as burr size and the type of forces that should be applied.

Overall, the outlook for robots in neurotology, particularly mastoidectomy, is bright but some hurdles still remain to be overcome.

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Meningiomas in pregnancy: timing of surgery and clinical outcomes as observed in 104 cases and establishment of a best management strategy

Acta Neurochir (2018) 160:1521–1529

There is a strong correlation between the level of circulating female sex hormones and the parturient growth of meningiomas. As a result, rapid changes in meningioma size occur during pregnancy, putting both the mother and fetus at risk. Large, symptomatic meningiomas require surgical resection, regardless of the status of pregnancy. However, the preferred timing of such complex intervention is a matter of debate. The rarity of this clinical scenario and the absence of prospective trials make it difficult to reach evidence-based conclusions. The aim of this study was to create evidencebased management guidelines for timing of surgery for pregnancy-related intracranial meningiomas.

Method The English literature from 1990 to 2016 was systematically reviewed according to PRISMA guidelines for all surgical cases of pregnancy–related intracranial meningiomas. Cases were divided into two groups: patients who have had surgery during pregnancy and delivered thereafter (group A) and patients who delivered first (group B). Groups were compared for demographic, clinical and radiological features, as well as for neurosurgical, obstetrical and neonatological outcomes. Statistical analysis was performed to assess differences.

Results A total of 104 surgical cases were identified and reviewed, of which 86 were suitable for comparison and statistical analysis. Thirty-five patients (40%) underwent craniotomy for resection during pregnancy or at delivery (group A) and 51 patients (60%) underwent surgery after delivery (group B). Groups showed no significant differences in characteristics such as age at diagnosis, number of gestations, presenting symptoms, tumor site and tumor size. Despite a comparable distribution over the gestational trimesters, group A had significantly more patients diagnosed prior to the 27th gestational week (46 vs 17.5%, p = 0.0075). Group Awas also associated with a significantly higher rate of both emergent craniotomies (40 vs 19.6%, p = 0.0048) and emergent Caesarian deliveries (47 vs 17.8%, p = 0.00481). The time from diagnosis to surgery was significantly longer in group B (11 weeks vs 1 week in group A, p = 0.0013). The rate of premature delivery was high but similar in both groups (∼70%). Risks of maternal mortality or fetal mortality were associated with group A (odds ratio = 14.7), but did not reach statistical significance.

Conclusions While surgical resection of meningioma during pregnancy may be associated with increased maternal and fetal mortalities, the overall neurosurgical, obstetrical and neonatological outcomes, as well as many clinical characteristics, are similar to patients undergoing resection postpartum. We believe that fetal survival chances have a significant impact on decision-making, as patients diagnosed at a later stage in pregnancy (≥27th week of gestation) were more likely to undergo delivery first. This complicated clinical scenario requires the close cooperation of multiple disciplines. While the mother’s health and well-being should always be paramount in guiding management, we hope that the overall good outcomes observed by this systematic review will encourage colleagues to aim for term pregnancies whenever possible in order to reduce prematurity-related problems.

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Method for temporal keyhole lobectomies in resection of low- and high-grade gliomas

J Neurosurg 128:1388–1395, 2018

The purpose of this study was to describe a method of resecting temporal gliomas through a keyhole lobectomy and to share the results of using this technique.

METHODS The authors performed a retrospective review of data obtained in all patients in whom the senior author performed resection of temporal gliomas between 2012 and 2015. The authors describe their technique for resecting dominant and nondominant gliomas, using both awake and asleep keyhole craniotomy techniques.

RESULTS Fifty-two patients were included in the study. Twenty-six patients (50%) had not received prior surgery. Seventeen patients (33%) were diagnosed with WHO Grade II/III tumors, and 35 patients (67%) were diagnosed with a glioblastoma. Thirty tumors were left sided (58%). Thirty procedures (58%) were performed while the patient was awake. The median extent of resection was 95%, and at least 90% of the tumor was resected in 35 cases (67%). Five of 49 patients (10%) with clinical follow-up experienced permanent deficits, including 3 patients (6%) with hydrocephalus requiring placement of a ventriculoperitoneal shunt and 2 patients (4%) with weakness. Three patients experienced early postoperative anomia, but no patients had a new speech deficit at clinical follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS The authors provide their experience using a keyhole lobectomy for resecting temporal gliomas. Their data demonstrate the feasibility of using less invasive techniques to safely and aggressively treat these tumors.

 

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Frontal Keyhole Craniotomy for Resection of Low- and High-Grade Gliomas

Neurosurgery 82:388–396, 2018

Minimally invasive techniques are increasingly being used to access intraaxial brain lesions.

OBJECTIVE: To describe a method of resecting frontal gliomas through a keyhole craniotomy and share the results with these techniques.

METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of data obtained on all patients undergoing resection of frontal gliomas by the senior author between 2012 and 2015.We describe our technique for resecting dominant and nondominant gliomas utilizing both awake and asleep keyhole craniotomy techniques.

RESULTS: After excluding 1 patient who received a biopsy only, 48 patients were included in the study. Twenty-nine patients (60%) had not received prior surgery. Twenty-six patients (54%) were diagnosed with WHO grade II/III tumors, and 22 patients (46%) were diagnosedwith glioblastoma. Twenty-five cases (52%)were performed awake.At least 90% of the tumor was resected in 35 cases (73%). Three of 43 patients with clinical follow-up experienced permanent deficits.

CONCLUSION: We provide our experience in using keyhole craniotomies for resecting frontal gliomas. Our data demonstrate the feasibility of using minimally invasive techniques to safely and aggressively treat these tumors.

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Effectiveness of endoscopic surgery for supratentorial hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage: a comparison with craniotomy

J Neurosurg 128:553–559, 2018

The goal of this study was to investigate the effectiveness and practicality of endoscopic surgery for treatment of supratentorial hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage (HICH) compared with traditional craniotomy.

METHODS The authors retrospectively analyzed 151 consecutive patients who were operated on for treatment of supratentorial HICH between January 2009 and June 2014 in the Department of Neurosurgery at Chinese PLA General Hospital. Patients were separated into an endoscopy group (82 cases) and a craniotomy group (69 cases), depending on the surgery they received. The hematoma evacuation rate was calculated using 3D Slicer software to measure the hematoma volume. Comparisons of operative time, intraoperative blood loss, Glasgow Coma Scale score 1 week after surgery, hospitalization time, and modified Rankin Scale score 6 months after surgery were also made between these groups.

RESULTS There was no statistically significant difference in preoperative data between the endoscopy group and the craniotomy group (p > 0.05). The hematoma evacuation rate was 90.5% ± 6.5% in the endoscopy group and 82.3% ± 8.6% in the craniotomy group, which was statistically significant (p < 0.01). The operative time was 1.6 ± 0.7 hours in the endoscopy group and 5.2 ± 1.8 hours in the craniotomy group (p < 0.01). The intraoperative blood loss was 91.4 ± 93.1 ml in the endoscopy group and 605.6 ± 602.3 ml in the craniotomy group (p < 0.01). The 1-week postoperative Glasgow Coma Scale score was 11.5 ± 2.9 in the endoscopy group and 8.3 ± 3.8 in the craniotomy group (p < 0.01). The hospital stay was 11.6 ± 6.9 days in the endoscopy group and 13.2 ± 7.9 days in the craniotomy group (p < 0.05). The mean modified Rankin Scale score 6 months after surgery was 3.2 ± 1.5 in the endoscopy group and 4.1 ± 1.9 in the craniotomy group (p < 0.01). Patients had better recovery in the endoscopy group than in the craniotomy group. Data are expressed as the mean ± SD.

CONCLUSIONS Compared with traditional craniotomy, endoscopic surgery was more effective, less invasive, and may have improved the prognoses of patients with supratentorial HICH. Endoscopic surgery is a promising method for treatment of supratentorial HICH. With the development of endoscope technology, endoscopic evacuation will become more widely used in the clinic. Prospective randomized controlled trials are needed.

 

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Limitations of the endonasal endoscopic approach in treating olfactory groove meningiomas

Acta Neurochir (2017) 159:1875–1885

To review current management strategies for olfactory groove meningioma (OGM)s and the recent literature comparing endoscopic endonasal (EEA) with traditional transcranial (TCA) approaches.

Methods A PubMed search of the recent literature (2011– 2016) was performed to examine outcomes following EEA and TCA for OGM. The extent of resection, visual outcome, postoperative complications and recurrence rates were analyzed using percentages and proportions, the Fischer exact test and the Student’s t-test using Graphpad PRISM 7.0Aa (San Diego, CA) software.

Results There were 444 patients in the TCA group with a mean diameter of 4.61 (±1.17) cm and 101 patients in the EEA group with a mean diameter of 3.55 (± 0.58) cm (p = 0.0589). GTR was achieved in 90.9% (404/444) in the TCA group and 70.2% (71/101) in the EEA group (p < 0.0001). Of the patients with preoperative visual disturbances, 80.7% (21/26) of patients in the EEA cohort had an improvement in vision compared to 12.83%(29/226) in the TCA group (p < 0.0001). Olfaction was lost in 61% of TCA and in 100% of EEA patients. CSF leaks and meningitis occurred in 25.7% and 4.95% of EEA patients and 6.3% and 1.12% of TCA patients, respectively (p < 0.0001; p = 0.023).

Conclusions Our updated literature review demonstrates that despite more experience with endoscopic resection and skull base reconstruction, the literature still supports TCA over EEA with respect to the extent of resection and complications. EEA may be an option in selected cases where visual improvement is the main goal of surgery and postoperative anosmia is acceptable to the patient or in medium-sized tumors with existing preoperative anosmia. Nevertheless, based on our results, it seems more prudent at this time to use TCA for the majority of OGMs.

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Frontal Sinus Breach During Routine Frontal Craniotomy

Neurosurgery 81:504–511, 2017

Frontotemporal craniotomies are commonly performed for a variety of neurosurgical pathologies. Infections related to craniotomies cause significant morbidity. We hypothesized that the risk of cranial surgical site infections (SSIs) may be increased in patients whose frontal sinuses are breached during craniotomy.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the rate of cranial SSIs in patients undergoing frontotemporal craniotomies with and without frontal sinus breach (FSB).

METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of all patients undergoing frontotemporal craniotomies for the management of cerebral aneurysms from 2005 to 2014. This study included 862 patients undergoing 910 craniotomies. Primary outcomeof interest was occurrence of a cranial SSI. Standard statistical methods were utilized to explore associations between a variety of variables including FSB, cranial SSI, and infections requiring reoperation.

RESULTS: Of the 910 craniotomies, 141 (15.5%) involved FSB. Of those involving FSB, 22 (15.6%) developed a cranial SSI, compared to only 56 of the 769 without FSB (7.3%; P = .001). Cranial SSI requiring reoperation wasmuch more likely in patients with FSB compared to those without a breach (7.8% vs 1.6%; P < .001). In those presenting with cranial SSIs, epidural abscess formation was more common with FSB compared to no FSB (27.3% vs 5.4%; P = .006). In multivariate analysis, breach of the frontal sinus was significantly associated with cranial SSI (OR 2.16; 95% CI 1.24-3.78; P = .01) and reoperation (OR 4.20; 95% CI 1.66-10.65; P = .003).

CONCLUSION: Patients undergoing frontotemporal craniotomies are at significantly greater risk of serious cranial SSIs if the frontal sinus has been breached.

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Complications of ventricular entry during craniotomy for brain tumor resection

J Neurosurg 127:426–432, 2017

Recent studies have demonstrated that periventricular tumor location is associated with poorer survival and that tumor location near the ventricle limits the extent of resection. This finding may relate to the perception that ventricular entry leads to further complications and thus surgeons may choose to perform less aggressive resection in these areas. However, there is little support for this view in the literature. This study seeks to determine whether ventricular entry is associated with more complications during craniotomy for brain tumor resection.

METHODS A retrospective analysis of patients who underwent craniotomy for tumor resection at Henry Ford Hospital between January 2010 and November 2012 was conducted. A total of 183 cases were reviewed with attention to operative entry into the ventricular system, postoperative use of an external ventricular drain (EVD), subdural hematoma, hydrocephalus, and symptomatic intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH).

RESULTS Patients in whom the ventricles were entered had significantly higher rates of any complication (46% vs 21%). Complications included development of subdural hygroma, subdural hematoma, intraventricular hemorrhage, subgaleal collection, wound infection, urinary tract infection/deep venous thrombosis, hydrocephalus, and ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt placement. Specifically, these patients had significantly higher rates of EVD placement (23% vs 1%, p < 0.001), hydrocephalus (6% vs 0%, p = 0.03), IVH (14% vs 0%, p < 0.001), infection (15% vs 5%, p = 0.04), and subgaleal collection (20% vs 4%, p < 0.001). It was also observed that VP shunt placement was only seen in cases of ventricular entry (11% vs 0%, p = 0.001) with 3 of 4 of these patients having a large ventricular entry (defined here as entry greater than a pinhole [< 3 mm] entry). Furthermore, in a subset of glioblastoma patients with and without ventricular entry, Kaplan- Meier estimates for survival demonstrated a median survival time of 329 days for ventricular entry compared with 522 days for patients with no ventricular entry (HR 1.13, 95% CI 0.65–1.96; p = 0.67).

CONCLUSIONS There are more complications associated with ventricular entry during brain tumor resection than in nonviolated ventricular systems. Better strategies for management of periventricular tumor resection should be actively sought to improve resection and survival for these patients.

 

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